[Footnote 381: Named by DeFaria, Gelalde Mamet Hecbar Taxa; probably a corruption of Gelal 'oddin Mahomet Akbar Shah.--E.]
The king of Acheen was one of the Indian princes who had entered into the grand confederacy against the Portuguese, and had agreed to lay siege to Malacca, but did not execute his part of the league till about the middle of October 1571, when he appeared before Malacca with a fleet of near 100 sail, in which he had 7000 soldiers with a large train of artillery and a vast quantity of ammunition. Landing on the night of his arrival, he set fire to the town of Iller, which was saved from total destruction by a sudden and violent shower of rain. He next endeavoured to burn the Portuguese ships in the harbour; but failing in this and some minor enterprizes he sat down before the city, intending to take it by a regular siege, having been disappointed in his expectations of carrying it by a coup de main. At this time Malacca was in a miserable condition, excessively poor, having very few men and these unhealthy and dispirited, having suffered much by shipwreck, sickness, and scarcity of provisions, not without deserving, these calamities; for Malacca was then the Portuguese Nineveh in India, I know not if it be so now. In this deplorable situation, incessantly battered by the enemy, cut off from all supplies of provisions, Malacca had no adequate means and, hardly any hopes of defence. In this extremity Tristan Vaz accidentally entered the port with a single ship, in which he had been to Sunda for a cargo of pepper. Being earnestly intreated by the besieged to assist them, he agreed to do every thing in his power, though it seemed a rash attempt to engage a fleet of 100 sail with only ten vessels, nine of which were almost rotten and destitute of rigging. Among these he distributed 300 naked and hungry wretches; and though confident in his own valour, he trusted only in the mercy of God, and caused all his men to prepare for battle by confession, of which he set them the example.
He sailed from Malacca with this armament about the end of November 1571, and soon discovered the formidable fleet of the enemy in the river Fermoso. Giving the command of his own ship to Emanuel Ferreyra, Tristam Vaz de Vega went sword in hand into a galliot, to encourage his men to behave valiantly by exposing himself to the brunt of battle along with them. On the signal being given by a furious discharge of cannon, Tristan instantly boarded the admiral ship of the enemy, making great havock in her crew of 200 men and even carried away her ensign. Ferdinand Perez with only 13 men in a small vessel took a galley of the enemy. Ferdinand de Lemos ran down and sunk one of the enemies ships. Francisco de Lima having taken another set her on fire, that he might be at liberty to continue the fight. Emanuel Ferreyra sank three vessels, unrigged several others, and slew great numbers of the enemy. In short, every one fought admirably, and the whole hostile fleet fled, except four gallies and seven smaller vessels that were burnt or sunk. Seven hundred of the enemy were taken or slain, with the loss only of five men on the side of the victors. The Portuguese ships waited three days in the river to see if the enemy would return, and then carried the joyful news to Malacca, where it could hardly be believed[382].
[Footnote 382: Though not mentioned by De Faria, the king of Acheen appears to Jave raised the siege of Malacca after this naval victory.--E.]
Sometime in the year 1578, four ships arrived at Goa from Portugal, under the command of Francisco de Sousa, who immediately on landing went to the archbishop Don Gaspar, to whom he delivered a packet from the king. The royal orders contained in this packet were read by a cryer in the archiepiscopal church, and announced that Don Antonio de Noronha was deposed from the dignity of viceroy, to whom Antonio Moniz Barreto was immediately to succeed with the title of governor. By another order, Gonzalo Pereyra was appointed to the government of Malacca, in default of whom Don Leonis Pereyra was substituted, and accordingly succeeded as the other was dead.
Advice was now brought to Goa that Malacca was again in danger, as the king of Acheen was before it a second time, assisted by the queen of Japara. On this intelligence, Moniz desired Leonis Pereyra to set out for his government, and Leonis demanded of him to be supplied with the same force which Moniz had formerly required from Noronha; yet Moniz, without considering what he had himself wrote on that subject to the king, and that India was now free from danger, refused his request. Leonis, to leave the new governor no excuse for his conduct, would even have been satisfied with a much smaller force than that formerly required by Moniz, but even that was refused him, and he went away to Portugal refusing to assume the government of Malacca. About the end of this year 1573, orders came from Portugal for the trial and execution of Don George de Castro for surrendering Chale to the zamorin. He was accordingly beheaded publicly: Yet in the year following a commission was sent out from Portugal for employing him in another command.
Scarcely had India begun to enjoy some respite after the late troubles, when the queen of Japara sent her general Quiaidaman to besiege Malacca with 15,000 chosen natives of Java, in a fleet of 80 large galleons and above 220 smaller vessels. Tristan Vaz de Vega happened to be then at Malacca, and was chosen by common consent to assume the command, Francisco Enriquez the former commandant being dead. Tristan Vaz sent immediate notice to Goa of his danger; on which Moniz issued orders to all the neighbouring places to send succours, and began to fit out a fleet for its relief. In the mean time the Javanese army landed and besieged Malacca. Vaz sent Juan Pereyra and Martin Ferreyra with 150 men to drive the enemy from a post. After killing 70 of the enemy, they levelled the work and brought off seven pieces of cannon. Pereyra afterwards burnt 50 of their galleons, and destroyed some great engines which they had constructed for attacking a bastion. Two other officers in a sortie burnt the pallisades which the enemy had erected for straitening the garrison and defending their own quarters. After this, Pereyra going out of the river with the Portuguese vessels, besieged the besiegers, and at Jor took a large quantity of provisions that were going to the Javanese army. Upon these repeated misfortunes, the Javanese embarked in great consternation, and withdrew under night; but were pursued by Pereyra, who cut off many of their vessels in the rear. Almost half of this great army perished by the sword or sickness in this siege, which lasted three months.
Hardly was the army of the queen of Japara gone from Malacca when the king of Acheen arrived before it with 40 gallies, and several ships and smaller vessels, to the number of 100 in all, with a great train of artillery. Tristan Vaz gave orders to Juan Pereyra in a galley, Bernardin de Silva in a caravel, and Ferdinand de Palares in a ship, having each 40 men, to go out of the harbour on purpose to protect a convoy of provisions then in its way to Malacca, of which the city was in great want. The fleet of the enemy immediately attacked them, and soon battered all three ships to pieces. Seventy-five of the Portuguese were slain or drowned on this occasion, forty were made prisoners, and only five saved themselves by swimming. Only 150 men now remained in. Malacca, of whom 100 were sick or aged. Being in want both of men and ammunition Tristan Vaz was under the necessity of remaining very quiet; but the enemy fearing he was preparing some stratagem against them, raised the siege in a panic of terror when they might easily have carried the city, after remaining before it from the beginning to the end of January 1575. The priests, women and children of the distressed city had implored the mercy of God with sighs and tears; and next to God, the city owed its safety to the courage of Tristan Vaz, and to his generosity likewise, as he spent above 20,000 ducats in its defence.
At this period Juan de Costa cruised upon the Malabar coast with two gallies and twenty-four other vessels. The town of Guipar near Bracalore being in rebellion, he landed there and set the town on fire after killing 1500 of the inhabitants. He likewise cut down the woods[383] in revenge for the rebellion of the natives. After this he destroyed an island belonging to the zamorin in the river of Chale, and ruined the city of Parapangulem belonging to the same sovereign, where the heir of the kingdom was slain with 200 of his followers. At Capocate 300 of the natives were slain with the loss of two only of the Portuguese. The town of Nilacharim near mount Dely was destroyed by fire. In the intervals between these exploits on the land, several vessels belonging to the enemy were taken, by which the fleet was supplied with slaves and provisions.
[Footnote 383: Probably the groves of cocoa-nut trees are here alluded to.--E.]